Punishment
by ramenreignss
Summary: As punishment for their actions against him, Kane decides to team up the Shield with the newest main roster diva, Emma. His plan backfires when the team surprisingly work well together. But what happens when Emma finds out she's a pawn in Kane's plans. [Implied Dean/Emma]
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** So, I originally posted this as a one-shot, but after a couple of suggestions I decided to split it up into a few chapters. Tried to add more detail and such to it. Shout out to **LadyEvil21**, **Iakarie**, and **caz21** for reviewing on the original post!

_**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**_

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**Chapter One**_ – Not everything is as it seems._

When the Director of Operations had first approached Emma, she was quite terrified. The former Big Red Machine known as Kane was certainly massive and intimidating. He could probably crush her with just one of his huge fingers!

The Australian was sure she looked like a trembling imbecile, looking up at him with wide eyes and nodding slowly when he spoke to her.

She hadn't known what to expect from Kane. Another match against Summer Rae? Sending her back to Developmental? Hell, maybe he'd demand her to get him a freaking coffee or something!

But never in a million years had she expected him to tell her that she'd be teaming up with the Shield for mixed tag match against Summer Rae, Fandango, and the Real Americans on Monday Night Raw.

Apparently, the Shield hadn't been expecting that either. Because when her music hit and she came dancing down the ramp, they didn't look all too pleased.

Needless to say, Emma had been afraid that they would refuse to work with her. That they'd walk out and leave her high and dry.

But in the end, she must have impressed them somehow because they didn't abandon her, they worked with her and they even let her join fists with them showing their unity and success. They wouldn't do her dance with her though. Which was a shame, but expected.

And she thought that was the end of that.

But then she had a match with them again on Smackdown. And this time around _they_ approached _her _to discuss battle strategies—as Seth liked to call them.

Was this a dream come true for her or what? How many people could say they got to work so closely with Shield? Not many, that was for sure. She felt like she was in some elite club!

They surprisingly worked well together. Emma, still so very eager to learn new things, took in everything they said and did with stride.

And maybe she wanted to impress them some more, but who wouldn't want to impress the Shield? Those were guys you wanted on your side.

A week rolled by, and it was Monday Night Raw again. The card showed that she would be teaming up with the Shield against Aksana and 3MB.

She was almost skipping down the halls (she didn't want to copy crazy AJ) in search of her Shield brethren (yes, she dubbed them as such!) to talk over strategies for the match.

And maybe she also just wanted to be in the presence of three incredibly attractive males. Who could blame her, really?

Rounding a corner, Emma finally spotted her new teammates. Their backs were turned to her, and her smile was so large her cheeks almost hurt. She was about to approach them but stopped short when she heard their conversation was about to center around her.

"So, we've got another match with Emma tonight." Seth stated.

"Another one?" Dean groaned sounding frustrated. _Uh-oh._ Emma thought, a feeling of dread beginning to chill her skin. "They trying to make her our valet now or something?"

Emma was taken aback, but it made her think. Were they trying to do that? As far as she knew, the Shield never had a female partner. So, why her? But, it was a good thing they had her wrestling… right? A valet usually just followed them down to the ring.

"Pretty sure this is just another way for Kane to punish us. He's counting on her to embarrass us." Roman's deep voice broke down the wall.

The proverbial wall that had prevented Emma from seeing what was right in front of her all along.

_I'm… punishment? _Much to her displeasure, tears stung at Emma's eyes as the hurt clenched at her heart.

"Don't know whether Kane's an idiot or a genius." Dean laughed and Roman joined him with a chuckle, adding salt to the fresh wound.

"Come on now, guys." Seth piped in, sounding amused. "She's got some pretty impressive in ring abilities. Not so much dancing abilities, though. Do you think she knows Kane's using her?"

_Well, now I do! _She thought, feeling about ready to vomit.

She quickly decided that she's heard enough and swiftly turned on her heel before any of them could notice she overheard their conversation. Her heart hammered against her chest as she practically ran back to the Diva's locker room.

She didn't know how to feel about all of this. Well, her feelings were clearly hurt, but maybe they shouldn't have been. She's only partnered with the Shield a few times, and sure, they worked well together and got along well enough, but that in no way meant they were 'friends' or even partners. This was a temporary thing until Kane got tired of it.

It didn't make sense to take their words to heart. But how was she supposed to feel when she was considered a damn _punishment_? Even the toughest of Divas would be hurt by such an offense!

Unintentionally, she slammed the locker room door behind her and plopped down on one of the benches, ignoring the strange looks she received from the other divas.

Their judgment hardly mattered to her. At the moment, the only thing that mattered was the fact that she was being used as a tool by Kane to humiliate the Shield.

Perhaps it had been foolish of her to think that Management had been so impressed with her in ring ability that they decided to team her with the greatest faction the WWE had seen in years. She should have known there was more to this scheme considering the current issues the Shield was having with the Authority.

But to have her be used to _embarrass_ them? Could there be a bigger insult than 'you're so freakish we're going to use you to embarrass our greatest threat'?

Well, there was the fact that the Shield seemed to agree that she was embarrassing enough.

Why had they been so nice to her though? Was it simply to put up a show to backfire the Authority's plan and get rid of her? Why couldn't they just talk to her about it? She would have made up some excuse to the Authority not to work with the Shield. It wouldn't have been a hard thing to prove that she feared to continue working with them. Though it was hardly true. She didn't fear them. She liked them.

That feeling was currently up for debate, however.

How could she still like them after this? How could she still possibly work with them after this?

How was she supposed to go through with this match tonight?

_Like a bloody professional, Emma! _She scolded herself, suddenly sitting up straight, a fierce determination making her feel braver. _You're a professional and this changes nothing!_

But it felt like it changed everything.

* * *

"I don't think she'd be so eager to be around us if she knew the truth, Seth." Roman declared after Seth's question.

It bothered them, really. That Kane would stoop so low to try and use the poor girl against them. She's an impressive woman—and that's certainly something coming from them. Sure, she's a bit strange, but they all had their quirks. They figured, Kane thought they would do something drastic for having a newbie latched to them. But it was actually quite the opposite. They didn't mind having a newbie around to learn from them. That may not sound like the oh-so intimidating Shield, but the women's division needed some spice and they thought Emma could bring that to the table.

Hopefully, Management would use her correctly.

But considering what they were trying to do with her now with them, they doubted they would unless she truly proved herself.

"Should we tell her then?" Seth questioned, thinking it only fair to let her in on their suspicions.

"Now ain't the time for that, Seth." Dean spoke up gruffly. "We have a match with her tonight. That's not the kind of bombshell we want to put on her right now. She needs to keep her head in the game. Something like that would take away her focus."

Seth nodded in agreement. "You're right. But we eventually have to say something to her, right? I mean she deserves to know what Kane's doing."

"We'll tell her eventually." Dean shrugged, seeming uncaring.

"We'll tell her tomorrow night." Roman stated firmly, giving Dean a hard look.

"Whatever." The blonde replied nonchalantly.

Dean knew it looked like he didn't care. Because he wasn't supposed to care. He rarely cared about other people's feelings. And he needed to keep up with that image.

Because the fact of the matter was, that he did care about what Emma thought. He did care that she would be hurt when she found out the truth. He didn't want to see the wounded look when they told her that she was a pawn in Kane's games.

It was bizarre that he felt so strongly about this—for a woman he hardly knew. Emma was pretty enough compared to the other divas. She didn't have much on the other divas, he'd admit. But he liked that. She had her own type of beauty. She was strange.

And there were plenty of people in this business who would tell you that he was strange, too.

That hardly explained his feelings, though. Why he cared so much about how Emma felt about all of this?

And that frustrated him to no end. He didn't like not being able to understand his own damn feelings.

"Yo, Dean." Roman's voice tore him from his thoughts.

Cold blue eyes darted over to the Samoan, "What?"

"In your own world again? I just asked you if you wanted to grab something to eat before warming up for the match." Roman said, used to Dean going into his own universe at times.

Though he wasn't hungry, Dean was eager for the distraction. "Yeah. Let's go."

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**Review, please and thank you!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: **Sorry this update took me longer that it should have! The next chapter is actually going to be the last chapter, so this is a three-shot story. Then I'm going to try and work on that sequel I had talked about in the original post.

Shout out to **caleb's babe**, **Toyin361**, and **LadyEvil21** for reviewing!

**Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing.**

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**Chapter Two** – _How to be a professional._

Emma's nerves had her practically shaking as she danced down the ramp and towards the ring. Her enthusiasm was clearly forced and she was sure she looked like a dolt with her clenched smile.

But still, the fans cheered—and that made her feel a little better. Just a little.

That tiny scrap of a good feeling immediately diminished the moment the Shield's theme music blared in the arena.

_Be a professional, Emma. Be professional. You're a professional. _She said in her head like a mantra.

She hardly even noticed when they entered the ring and she jumped when Seth patted her shoulder. Hoping to cover herself, she gave him the fakest smile, her teeth clenching together tightly.

The two toned superstar gave her an odd look. "You alright?"

"Excellent!" She replied too quickly, stepping away from him.

Raising a brow, Seth decided not to comment on her strange—well, stranger than usual—behavior. They had a match to win.

Emma and Aksana would start the match. Ladies first. As usual.

And though she tried, Emma's head wasn't much in the game. Aksana was dominating her so that it was almost embarrassing.

It _was_ embarrassing. It was damn pathetic.

She supposed she was fulfilling her deed in being 'punishment'. The very thought made her feel sick. She didn't know if she could do this anymore.

Suddenly, she heard a loud pop and she felt a harsh sting against her cheek. She looked to Aksana standing before her, badmouthing her. It doesn't take long for Emma to realize that Aksana just slapped her. Bitch slapped her.

Fire burned her insides, and she's never felt so angry before in her life. Perhaps the slap was a wake up call. She wouldn't be thanking Aksana any time, though.

In a burst of her rage, Emma kicked the Lithuanian in the gut and pushed her back roughly. Aksana stumbled back to her corner, getting the tag from Drew McIntyre.

In mixed tag matched, the men and women rarely ever faced one another or even touched each other. Apparently, McIntyre never got that memo. With three big steps, he was in Emma's face before she could even get to her corner and shoved her to the ground roughly.

She looked up at the smirking man with wide eyes and a slackened jaw. Emma couldn't believe he just did that. She had no idea what kind of person Drew McIntyre was, and she got the feeling he did this to get a reaction out of her teammates. Which seemed to work; she swore she heard Dean screaming at him.

"You're a dead man, McIntyre!" Oh yes, that was Dean shouting at the undisturbed man. His hand outstretched towards Emma. "Tag me in! Tag me in, Emma!"

He was shouting out her, but she barely heard a word. If the slap from Aksana pissed her off, McIntyre just infuriated her. Swiftly and without much thought, Emma kicked her foot out and her boot directly hit the snickering wrestler in the groin.

The blonde was highly satisfied with the crowds low "Oh!"

She looked back at her teammates, and a swell of pride burst through her at the admiration in their expressions. Dean still looked very eager to get in the ring and kick someone's ass. He hopped on his feet anxiously; arm still outstretched to her as he awaited her tag impatiently.

Emma rose to her feet, smiling at the three men, ready to make the tag.

For a moment, it felt like everything was going to be all right. She never heard that conversation between them and she was still blissfully unaware of reality. Nothing mattered. It was just her and the Shield dominating this match with no problem.

Reality crashed down on her swiftly.

Two hands were suddenly in her hair and she shrieked when she was thrown violently to the ground, her head thudding harshly against the mat.

Groaning, Emma rolled to the side, holding the back of her head. The ring shook and she barely made out that Dean just rushed into the ring and jumped Drew, throwing harsh punches at the man while the referee tried to push him back.

Her vision blurred as she watched the referee finally managed to get Dean back to their corner. Despite the throbbing in her head, she didn't waste another moment to get to her corner and tag someone in.

It was Roman she reached first.

"Emma, are you okay?" Seth asked, kneeling down to her level as she sat in the corner trying to regain her composure.

"I'm fine." _Pure lie_.

Dean scoffed, his expression broadcasting the want to murder someone. Specifically Drew McIntyre. "You should've seen the way your head bounced off the mat. You're not fine."

Maybe it was the wind still being knocked out of her making her so irrational, but Emma decided she didn't like Dean contradicting her statement—despite the fact that he was probably totally right.

"I said that I'm fine." She growled, glaring at the other blonde. Seth looked between the two, shocked at Emma's tone. Dean was stoic, a bit of a maniac look in his eyes. Emma was undeterred, however. "I don't need you to tell me if I'm okay or not."

"Oh yeah? Well, we'll see what the Doc says after the match." Dean stated before returning his attention to the match.

_Pff! Like they care what the Doc has to say. _She thought bitterly as she moved to stand, desperately hoping neither of them saw the way her legs quivered._ Why would they care about the 'punishment'?_

Emma knew how childish she was being, but she wanted to be anywhere but here.

* * *

The match finished with another win for Emma and the Shield thanks to a deadly spear by Roman.

It was juvenile and probably very unprofessional, but Emma left ringside the moment they were announced winners, withdrawing herself from any celebration with her tag partners.

Despite her disagreement with Dean, she thought it best to see the Doctor about her head sooner rather than later.

Turned out Dean was wrong. Well, somewhat. The Doc cleared her with no serious injury and she was fine to continue travelling and wrestling. But it was preferable for her to rest and 'take it easy'. The doctor said she was lucky—it had looked like her head hit the ring rather roughly.

Lucky. If she was so lucky then why did she feel like such utter crap?

She walked into the Diva's locker room, shoulders slumped and an ice pack pressed against her head. She sunk down on the bench, sighing deeply. She just wanted to relax, as the doctor instructed her to.

She jumped when someone unceremoniously plopped down next to her on the bench. Nikki Bella was looking at her expectantly, a hint of concern in her dark eyes.

"Uh-" Emma was the new Diva on the main roster, and though most of the veterans have been nothing but kind and welcoming towards her, she was still a bit intimidated. You always heard horror stories about what happened to the newbies backstage.

"How're you feeling? McIntyre threw you down pretty hard." The Bella Twin queried, her worry more apparent.

Though she was surprised by the other Diva's concern, Emma merely shrugged. "Doc says it looked worse than it actually was. I'm cleared to continue wrestling and travel."

"Alright," Nikki nodded, "but are you okay? You didn't seem so hot after the match. You actually got out of there as fast as you could, and to be honest, you don't seem like your normal bubbly self."

Once again, Emma found herself surprised. She didn't think Nikki would be so observant of her actions. She wasn't expecting Nikki Bella to be paying any attention to her at all! This whole night was turning out to be a big ball of confusion.

"Oh… well… I don't know what to say." Was her weak reply.

Nikki's brows furrowed together. "Does this have anything to do with the Shield?"

Emma looked down at her hands, not responding.

"Yeah, we all thought it was pretty weird they paired you with them. Not to say you aren't talented or anything, but they normally stick to themselves and—" Nikki stopped short when the blonde woman looked like she was suddenly on the verge of tears. "Whoa, are you okay? I didn't mean to upset you. They didn't—they didn't do anything to hurt you, did they? I mean they seemed pretty concerned about you out there. I mean, Dean ran into the rin—"

"They didn't threaten me or hurt me." Emma interrupted, resting her head in her palm. This was all so confusing and causing more of an ache in her already sore head. "Maybe that's what has me so confused. They've honestly been nothing but nice to me, and maybe even a little bit protective."

"So, what's the problem then?" Nikki asked, resting her hand on Emma's shoulder. The Australian said nothing in return. The hesitancy to open up to the other Diva was evident.

"Hey, I know we hardly know each other and you're new here, but I'm here to listen. You don't have to believe that and you can just tell me to leave now, and I will. We Divas may be competitive towards each other and stuff, but as you know, we don't have a lot to fight for in this business. But please understand, when there's no belt involved, the ladies stick together. Well, most of us do, anyway." She explained, hand still on Emma's shoulder to show she wasn't going anywhere. "If you're in trouble or if something's bothering you, don't be afraid to talk. This may sound shocking, but I'm a pretty good listener."

Emma lifted her head, eyeing Nikki intently. The woman's expression showed genuine concern. And that did her in.

She told Nikki Bella everything.

* * *

Drew McIntyre was a dead man. Dean had declared such so viciously in the ring and then again backstage. Multiple times. He wished he could have done more damage to the pathetic excuse of a man, but the match was over and he promised himself he'd get Drew later on.

Preferably backstage so he could bash the man's head in something solid and unprotected by ring gear.

The image of Emma's head bouncing off the mat as Drew threw her down kept playing in his mind. The asshole looked so damn proud of himself, too.

Dean only got the satisfaction of a few rigid punches. He craved more. He needed to crack McIntyre's head open!

"I'm gonna kill 'em. I'm gonna fucking kill him." He growled viciously more to himself than his teammates.

Seth and Roman eyed their friend worryingly. They too were quite upset with what happened with Emma in the ring tonight—Drew McIntyre would rue the day he ever put his hands on the Diva. But Dean took the whole thing to another level. He had taken it so personally it was as if McIntyre maliciously attacked Dean himself! It didn't help that Emma left the ring without a word to any of them. That only seemed to put Ambrose more on edge.

It didn't make much sense to either Seth or Roman.

"Dean," Seth started cautiously, not wanting to upset the blonde any further, "Relax, man. Drew got what was coming to him, and what he did to Emma won't be forgotten. I doubt he'll be laying another finger on her ever again."

"He shouldn't have touched her to begin with!" Dean seethed, roughly running a hand through his messy hair. He wanted to hit something. "Fucking asshole shouldn't lay his hands on a woman like that."

When the three men formed their faction and came up to the main roster, they had made an agreement. They would make an impact on this industry, but they would not harm the women. Ever.

Dean's seen enough battered women in his life, and both Seth and Roman were raised to respect and protect women.

What Drew McIntyre did was the ultimate injustice.

"Knowing you, McIntyre's soon going to be taught a severe lesson in injustice." Roman said with a nod of approval. The Samoan was pleased to have been able to take McIntyre out with a spear. "I'm a little more concerned with Emma's hasty exit. Usually, she tries hugging one of us after a match. Mostly me."

"That's because you look the most like a chick. She's more comfortable with you, Fabio." Dean joked, though there was still a rough edge in his tone.

"Fuck off, asshole."

"That is concerning though, guys." Seth piped in, putting a stop to his friend's nonsense. "What McIntyre did was shitty, but Emma seemed more upset with us. Remember how she snapped at you, Dean? I don't think I've ever heard that girl angry about anything."

They barely knew Emma, but Seth has only seen viciousness from her performed in the ring. Even then, she mostly had an excited grin on her face. This was all rather uncharacteristic.

"We're about to find out why." Dean grumbled as they approached the Diva's locker room.

After two knocks, the door opened revealing Nikki Bella. Dean knew it was Nikki from the size of her breasts. That was really the only way he could tell the twins apart.

"What do _you_ want?" She asked, not all to pleased to see them.

They were hardly expecting a warm welcome from any of the Divas, but they didn't really think they warranted such rudeness and coldness. Or maybe they did considering they've attacked half of these women's boyfriends in the past.

"We came to see Emma." Dean replied tensely.

Nikki gave him a dirty look. "Why?"

"It's none of your damn business." The blonde man replied hotly. _I didn't come here to get interrogated! _

Always the peacekeeper, Seth butted in before the situation could get worse. "Dean, calm down!" He demanded, before returning his attention to the Bella twin, tone softening in hopes of getting on her good side. "We just came to make sure she's okay. It looked like her head was hit pretty badly and she left ringside without saying anything. We're just concerned."

Nikki gave Seth a long hard look. After what Emma had just confessed to her, she knew the newest Diva wouldn't fancy seeing any of these men at the moment. But, she supposed they had a right to know how she was feeling. "Doc said that she's fine. She's cleared to continue wrestling and stuff."

Dean never really had any problems with any of the Divas. In fact, he mostly kept away from them—he didn't need the trouble management would give him when he eventually offended one of them. But at the current moment, Nikki Bella was pissing him off.

"What's the deal? Why won't you let us see her?" He asked her, suspiciously.

"Because this is the _women's_ locker room, dumbass." Nikki retorted, fearlessly.

"Then tell her to come out and see us." Dean shot back, his piercing blue eyes glaring harshly at the woman.

"No."

Dean growled as Roman and Seth watched on, unsure of what to do.

"Why the hell not?" Dean was on the verge of yelling.

"Because," Nikki stood straight, eyes narrowed unpleasantly at all three men, "she doesn't want to see _you_."

With that, the door was slammed in their faces and they heard the distinct sound of it locking.

There was a long moment of silence as the three men registered what just happened.

"Did one of the Bella twins just slam the door in our face?" Roman finally asked.

"Yep." Seth replied still shocked.

"I think we're appearing too soft." Roman grumbled, clearly not too fond of the idea.

"Why wouldn't she want to see us?" Dean asked no one in particular, still looking at the closed door intently.

"Why do you care so much, Dean?" Seth asked, looking to his friend, genuinely curious.

It didn't make much sense to either Seth or Roman why Dean was this upset about Emma. Sure, she was a nice girl—a little odd, but still nice—and they liked her well enough, but Dean's reaction hardly seemed justified. They barely knew Emma.

So, what was going on with their normally callous friend?

If only Dean knew. If only he had some sort of explanation for his friends. At least an explanation that made any semblance of sense. But this whole thing scarcely made any sense to him either.

But Dean decided this was all Kane's fault. What possessed that corporate moron to decide partnering them up with the little Australian, let alone any woman? They were hardly stupid, they were sure Kane was counting on Emma to embarrass them and hopefully anger them enough to do something drastic. And lose fan favoritism and earn even more displeasure from the Authority. Emma's a newbie and it would make sense that she wouldn't make the ideal partner.

She proved them all wrong, however.

She did more than well in the ring. Dean was highly impressed with her fighting style and her submission moves, especially. Oddly enough, she worked well with them. She listened and was eager to learn whatever they were willing to teach her.

Kane's plans backfired. But somehow also worked. Emma was for some unknown reason upset with them. And that bothered him far more than it should.

"Dean?" Seth interrupted his thoughts.

He looked at his two friends, who in turn were staring at him in confusion. If only they knew how confused _he_ was.

"Well, I—"

"Will you creeps get the hell away from the door!" Nikki Bella yelled from inside the Divas locker room.

Seriously, and these guys had the nerve to say Emma was weird?

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**Reviews are my life source!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: **Okay, ladies and germs, this is it! This is the final chapter to this short story. I hope it meets your expectations and that you enjoy it!

**Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing.**

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**Chapter Three** – _All ends well. Sort of._

The back of Dean's heel hit the crate he currently sat on in an impatient manner. His arms crossed tightly over his chest, he stared intensely at the Divas locker room door.

Roman and Seth had both tried convincing him to let it go and come back to the locker room with them, but he had refused. His teammates knew once he put his mind to something, it was impossible to deter him from his mission. And he needed an explanation.

He needed to know why Emma wouldn't talk to them. He needed to know why the normally bubbly woman was so upset, apparently at him, Seth, and Roman. And mostly, he needed to figure out why she had such an affect on him.

He needed answers, and he wasn't leaving this arena until he talked to Emma. Which explained his current position across from the Diva's locker room.

Each Diva that exited had given him an odd look when they exited the room—he received a particularly dirty look from Nikki Bella. He didn't know what that chick's problem was, but as of right now he didn't much care. He was actually surprised security hadn't been called to get rid of him. A good thing in the end. It would make things exceedingly difficult if he got into a backstage fight.

He ran a hand through his hair, sighing in frustration. This made zero sense to him. This whole situation was just as confusing to him as it was to everyone else. No woman—no person—ever had this affect on him. What did it matter that Emma was upset and didn't want to talk to any of them?

He was Dean Ambrose! He's a wild card, he's the lunatic fringe, and he didn't care about anyone's feelings! He's upset plenty of women in his lifetime and never gave a crap about any of them afterwards.

But Emma was—it sounded so cheesy to say that she was different; he's only officially met her a week ago. But there was something different about her. Something that made him feel differently than he did towards other women.

She wasn't afraid of him.

In fact, when she met him, Seth, and Roman she was so excited. And not that type of excited women get when they were around attractive guys—though Emma herself certainly wouldn't deny the fact that they were gorgeous men—but the type of excited to get in the ring with experienced players and learn and be a part of what they were. Even if only for a moment.

Dean's head snapped up suddenly when he heard the Diva's locker room door open again. This time it finally was Emma exiting the room, dressed in a simple pair of jeans, one of her 'Emmalution' t-shirts, her duffle bag slung over her shoulder, and her jacket draped over her arm.

"Emma!" He called out, jumping off the crate.

She nearly jumped out of her skin, holding her jacket closer to her chest at the fright of being caught off guard. Wide eyed, she turned to see Dean walking towards her, still dressed in his ring gear.

If Emma were to expect any members of the Shield to be waiting up for her—which she never in a million years would!—Dean Ambrose was the last of the three men she'd expect.

"Uh, Dean." She began awkwardly as he stood before her, perhaps a little too close for comfort, but the eccentric man hardly ever took comfort zones into consideration. "What're you doing here?"

"We need to talk." He replied shortly, staring her down. "Let's go somewhere private."

Without waiting for her reply or even her approval, he turned on his heel and headed down the hall, motioning for her to follow. Emma's eyes were large with surprise. She supposed the dubious actions of Dean Ambrose should never shock her, but the man was peculiar. Regardless, she followed him.

He opened the door to an empty room and gestured for her to enter. She did so without question. Maybe that was foolish on her part, but how did that saying go? Curiosity killed the cat.

Not that she thought Dean would kill her. She was pretty sure he wouldn't—until she turned around to face him only to find him standing so close to her that her nose bumped into his chest and she had to crane her neck to look up at him.

"Ah," she took a step back, uncomfortable with the proximity.

Which was a bit astonishing to Dean. Like Roman had pointed out earlier, she was always trying to hug one of them after a match. Or get them to dance with her.

It was time to get to the bottom of this.

"Why aren't you talking to us?" Blunt and to the point, as always.

Emma was taken aback by the question. Obviously, they would be curious about her abrupt departure from the ring, but she didn't think any of them would care enough to seek her out.

"Um," came her puzzled reply.

The blonde woman shifted on her feet nervously. Since talking to Nikki, she's calmed down considerably. In fact, it seemed like the Bella twin absorbed her anger and took it out on the Shield on her behalf. Emma had been in the shower during Nikki's encounter with the three men, but Brie Bella had informed her of the situation, not too pleased with her sister's actions. The last thing those women needed was to be on the Shield's bad side when their was the ever present threat of the Authority breathing down their necks already.

Dean noted her continued discomfort and sighed deeply. This wasn't going well. He hadn't expected it to. He wasn't good with women in this aspect.

"Look, you left the ring and you didn't say anything to us. You looked angrier with us, and we've never done anything to harm you. We want to know what we did wrong." He told her in the calmest tone he could muster. He was doing his best not to scare her off.

Emma bit down on her bottom lip, glancing around the empty room. She thinks this might be the most uncomfortable situation she's ever been in since coming up to the main roster—and that included all those segments with Santino.

"Where are Seth and Roman?" She asked suddenly.

"Don't change the subject, Emma." Dean gruffly stated, momentarily forgetting that he was supposed to be nice.

"I'm not trying to, but if you're all so concerned about my actions, then why aren't they here too?"

"Well, we all did try to see you earlier, but a certain _twin_ stopped us." He replied, still bitter about Nikki Bella's interference. "The guys wanted to hit the showers before heading to the hotel."

"And why didn't you do the same? You could have caught up with me tomorrow before the taping of Smackdown. Why did you have to get answers from me right now, Dean?" Emma questioned him seriously.

"I…" Dean trailed off, unsure how to answer her. He could barely answer his own damn questions on this situation. He's reached his boiling point, and he's beyond annoyed now. "I'm an impatient man, Emma. I don't like waiting. I prefer the answers to my questions to come right away. So, if you wouldn't mind…" He made an exaggerated hand gesture, indicating for her to answer him.

Emma gave him a strange look. Everyone knew Dean Ambrose was an eccentric man—a lunatic fringe, as Michael Cole so kindly put. She knew the more she made him wait, the more irate he would become. Sighing, she ran a hand through her hair.

"I… I heard you, Seth, and Roman talking." She muttered, looking away from him.

Eyebrows scrunched together in confusion, Dean inquired, "About?"

"About me." Glancing back up at him, Emma's frown was near depressing to look at.

He was used to the brightness of her grin. _So bright it could light up a damn room_. He thought, almost irritably. "Okay." He spoke, still confused.

She shook her head sadly, and continued. "About how Kane was using me as punishment against you guys. About how… I'm embarrassing." She finally said, and she found it was hard to continue looking at Dean while confessing this. But still, she kept her darker eyes on his. She wouldn't back down.

It all suddenly dawned on Dean. She had overheard their conversation from earlier tonight. She was offended and she was hurt. She indeed hadn't known that Kane was using her. She thought her talent was being utilized, and she had to find out she was being used to embarrass three grown men from overhearing a conversation between said men.

He'd be pissed about that, too.

"Shit, Emma… why didn't you just come talk to us about it?" Dean wanted to know. It would have saved a lot of time and confusion if she had just talked to them about it.

"I—I was too upset!" Emma defended. "I didn't see the point in an immediate approach. You all seemed embarrassed enough to be teaming with me again anyway."

"We weren't embarrassed by you!" Dean argued.

"But you said that you didn't know if Kane was an idiot or genius for teaming me wi—"

"Yeah, that's because it fucking worked, Emma!" Dean snapped, interrupting her. Realizing that could be interpreted the wrong way, he quickly continued. "It didn't work the way he wanted it to. It worked because you were surprisingly a good partner. We liked working with you."

Emma blinked once. Then twice. _What?_

"You—you did?" She was astonished.

"Yes! Trust me, darlin', if we didn't like working with you then we would have found a way not to." He told her, relieved now that this bullshit was coming to an end.

"But… but you seemed so frustrated that we were having another match together." She said, remembering the obvious vexation in Dean's tone.

"I was frustrated over the fact of _why_ Kane was continuing to team us up. He was hoping for something that was never going to happen—us hurting you."

It was a fools thought to ever think the Shield would physically harm a woman. For someone to think such a thing was a downright offense to Dean Ambrose. Sure, he was known as the lunatic fringe, but he had _some_ morals.

"Oh," was all Emma could say.

There was a long silence between them suddenly, neither one sure how this conversation could continue. It seemed to be over for now, now that everything was out in the open.

Well, sort of everything. There was still the subject of Dean's own actions throughout this situation. Such as the fact that his feelings on this matter with Emma seemed to run deeper than those of his teammates. But that was something for another day. Dean Ambrose was never so open with his feelings.

"So… we good now?" He asked, breaking the silence. "I can go tell the guys that everything's okay now?"

"No," Emma said quickly, head shaking and an unreadable expression on her face, "we're not good."

Dread hit Dean. He had thought with everything out in the open now it meant everything was okay now. _Man, I really don't know women._

His confusion only grew tenfold when she suddenly smiled. "We won't be good-until you hug me." She held open her arms, happily waiting for him to come into them.

Dean blinked at her. "Are you fucking serious?"

Emma nodded eagerly. "Yeah. Come on! You know you want to." She said in a sing-song voice.

He let a deep sigh. _What the hell have I gotten myself in to?_ "God, you are so weird. I can't believe I'm doing this." He said before walking into her arms and wrapping his own around her.

A strange feeling rose in Emma's belly, suddenly. Having Dean's large arms around her felt oddly… comforting? Out of all the hugs she's exchanged with Santino or anyone in the WWE, none of them once ever felt like _this_. What did this mean? Emma might be a bit too afraid to find out and she didn't want to deal with it right now. Right now, she forced herself to concentrate on the fact that she actually got the Dean Ambrose to hug her!

The feelings that arose in Dean were beyond strange. Everything was flipping and flopping around inside him. He almost held Emma closer when he caught a whiff of her aroma. She smelled like bubblegum and soap. Weird, but then again so was Emma. In a good way. _God, these feelings are stupid!_

Thankfully, there was no one around to witness this. "You tell anyone about this, we're never speaking again, got it, blondie?"

Emma simply nodded, grinning from ear to ear as she embraced him tightly. She ignored the tenseness of his muscles and the smell of stale sweat.

For a moment, everything seemed right in the world again. Well, as right as things could go in the worlds of Emma and Dean Ambrose.

* * *

**Please, review and let me know how you felt about the final chapter!**

**I'm hoping to have the sequel to this posted by the end of the month or some time in May. It will be a longer multi-chaptered stories that will explore these feelings between Dean and Emma and how they handle them. Various other pairings will be mentioned/involved.**


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